Critical Moments: a Naruto Fanfic, Volume 2

Author's notes:

1) As with all works of fanfiction, this is for personal enjoyment. I in no way have any rights to the characters in Naruto or Boruto. The rights to the series and events are retained by the original owners and publishers.

2) This sequel takes place in the same altered timeline that Volume 1 takes place. As a results, many characters and events will be significantly altered from canon.

3) I did rate this for Mature audiences because this fanfiction will take place during the events of the Shippuden series. This will contain more adult content than Volume One. I would not recommend anyone under the age of 15 read this.

4) On a happier note, I hope you enjoy, whether you are a returning reader or someone picking this up for the first time. I dedicate this story to my wife as well as anyone who reads this story.


Chapter 1

"You ready, kiddo?" the aged Sannin asked Naruto.

"Ready, grandpa!" he nodded as he tied on his forehead guard. No holding back this time, put it all in!

"On your mark, make ready, GO!"

Naruto sprinted along the obstacle course Jiraiya and the Toad Sages had placed along the path to the mountain. At first, it was nothing but a long, smooth, straightaway. Come on, come on! Naruto noticed the subtle shift in grade as the path sloped upwards. Small potholes and larger rocks began pockmarking the landscape, turning even the slightest misstep into a badly sprained ankle. Despite the perilous pathway, Naruto continued forward like the Soul Consuming Demon was chasing him. He knew every rock and every hole on this course, and he'd injured himself on plenty of them in the past three years.

The path wound around beneath a raging waterfall. Concentrate! Naruto divided his chakra two ways, one to split the water falling overhead around him while the other maintained his grip on the slick rocky surface. When he first ran this path a year ago, he nearly drowned and had to be rescued by Jiraiya and the Toads. Every time he did this, his heart jumped at the memory of almost drowning like he had on his first mission at age twelve.

Naruto exited the thundering path of water, rounded the lake, and leapt up into a tree on the lakeshore. From its highest branch, he lunged for a tall pole shooting upright from the lake. He skipped off the pole to another five meters away, and another, careful not to lose his rhythm as he went from pole to pole across the lake again. This time the path slopped dramatically steeper, almost like climbing stairs with a muddy ramp instead of treads. Naruto checked his watch as he ascended. Almost two seconds slow, catch up!

The desire to break his record renewed the energy in his legs. Naruto began summoning the chakra around him in nature. Not too much, save it for the summit!

Fall leaves and mud soon gave way to the cold, crisp air of the upper shelf as Naruto ran straight up the rockface to the peak. Reaching the face's edge, Naruto shot into the air and landed on the mountain peak with his tiptoe of his right foot. He balanced in a tree-stance, closing his eyes, and feeling the intense gathering of nature all around him. Mom and Hinata had taught him to balance like this years ago. Despite needing to focus, his heart became heavy at the memory of the two and how much he missed them. Do this right, and you get the right to see them again today, concentrate!

Naruto focused everything into emptiness, and soon the flow of natural chakra pulsed through him like a river current – formless, but soon focusing into unfathomable power. Like a seal breaking, Naruto felt the change happen, and he opened his eyes, seeing the world sharper and clearer than ever. Go!

He dismounted the peak and raced down the side of the mountain with supernatural speed, even for a shinobi. Early autumn air kissed Naruto's face as he sprinted down the side of the mountain toward the last set of obstacles. As he ran, he breathed in the invigorating chakra surrounding him, pure nature, far removed from the sprawl of his home village. In some ways, he would miss his stay at Mount Myoboku. Having been away from Konoha for so long, the sound and noise of the village would take some getting used to. For that matter, the smell after around three years in the mountains might take getting used to as well. Ichiraku's! The memory of his favorite ramen shop tightened his lips into a wicked grin, and he threw everything he had left into the approach to the finish line.

Naruto's stomach gurgled as he arrived at the small hut that was home. One thing he wouldn't miss was the diet he had endured while here. The toads were extremely hospitable, but the diet of bugs and worms still made Naruto sick to his stomach – one thing that hadn't changed since day one. Early on, Naruto put his survival training to good use, and his diet included a steady supply of edible plants, roots, and mushrooms that he could forage. As he began packing up his few belongings for the trip home that started today, he began salivating at the thought of Ichiraku Ramen. Real food!

His pleasure was soon interrupted by Grandpa, or rather, the lack of his grandfather. The stopwatch was where he had been, but no Jiraiya. "Grandpa?" Naruto called out. "Gamakichi? Gamabunta?" Again, no answer. Something is majorly off.

Adrenaline surged as he focused his already heightened senses. Even without sage mode, Naruto had hearing and smell sharper than most humans thanks to Nine-Tails. However, he sensed nothing. Come out, come out, wherever you are. Right now, he'd kill to have Byakugan like Hinata or her cousin, Neji.

A flash of shadow came from his right, and Naruto barely got his guard up to protect himself. Before he could respond, the figure vanished. You're quick, I see!

Shadow formed in front of Naruto, and he turned back and left to stop another incoming strike. The enemy vanished again, only to materialize on his opposite side; Naruto juked to avoid the attack. By now, he knew the opponent's rhythm and flipped backwards to the spot behind where his opponent would materialize. As he appeared, Naruto charged the man, wrestling him to the ground in a bear hug.

They rolled for a moment, and both erupted in joyous laughter. "DAD!" Naruto shouted.

"Happy birthday, son!" Minato said as he pulled his son to his feet, continuing to hug him throughout.

"You're early!" Naruto beamed, "Don't tell me everyone missed me so bad they couldn't wait for me to finish my morning run!"

Dad pulled away, "They do miss you, son," Dad's face became somber, "as do I, but sadly, I'm here to ask you to break a particular promise."

"Dad?" Naruto a year ago today had promised Hinata that he would be home to see her on his sweet sixteen.

"I know she was hoping to see you again today, but I had something come up; and I need your help," Minato frowned.

"Need my help?" Naruto raised an eyebrow, "What's happening?"

"I need you and Jiraiya to go to Kumogakure," he said somberly.

"Kumo?" Naruto wasn't believing it. Mom and Hinata had nearly been taken by Kumo at a young age. During the Chunin Exams three years ago, a rogue group of shinobi from Kumo had tried kidnapping Hinata's sister, Hanabi. "Dad, what's going on?" Naruto insisted, putting his hands on his father's shoulders. By now, it wasn't much of a reach; they were almost the same height.

"I don't know," Dad shook his head, "There is a storm coming, and we need all the allies we can muster."

Naruto nodded slowly. A shinobi's first duty was to the village, but that did nothing to the sour feeling in Naruto's gut that he would be breaking such a promise to his girlfriend. "Dad, Hinata… can you tell her…"

"She already knows; I had to send her on a mission a few days ago, too. I gave her the bad news before she left."

"How'd she take it?" Naruto sighed. The sheer thought of seeing his girlfriend again had him manic when he woke this morning.

"Like a champion," Dad smiled, pulling a small envelope from his pocket, "She insisted on me giving you your birthday gift." He held out the small gift, nothing more than a paper envelope.

Naruto tore the paper away eagerly but careful to not destroy the contents. The folded paper gave way, revealing the heavenly image of Hinata. Her pale, amethyst eyes and her sweet, gently rounded cheeks greeted his sore eyes as he pulled the photo from the envelope. She had grown more than last time. Her old heavy jacket was now replaced with a purple and grey windbreaker. Hinata's silk black hair spilled over her shoulders. My god, she's even more beautiful than last year!

Naruto looked back as his dad; Dad regarded him thoughtfully. "There are no others?" Naruto asked.

"She's still wearing the locket," Minato shook his head with a crooked smile, "You worry too much! The girl is crazy for you, ya know!" Dad grinned as he imitated the verbal quirk mom and Naruto had picked up.

Naruto hugged the photo to him. "I couldn't imagine anything but an army of suitors trying to take her away, especially when I see her like this."

Minato's lips curled into a smirk, "Come on, son, I have to drop you and Jiraiya on the border to the Land of the Wind. It will still be a week or two to get there."

"What's my mission?" Naruto asked.

Dad held out a scroll. "Someone is targeting the Jinchuriki," he said, "I need Bee and Eight-Tails to be our allies if possible."

"The Jinchuriki," Naruto felt a chill cross him, "What about Hinata and Gaara?!"

"Hinata is… well secured," Dad said evasively, "and so is Gaara." Dad smiled, "Son, there isn't a lot of time to waste; are you in?"

"Yes," Naruto affirmed, "Do I have enough time to write a letter to Hinata?"

"Make it quick, I'll be dropping you and Jiraiya at the border of Kumo," he replied, "I can't be seen; this is all clandestine. Our enemies might be watching our every movement, and we don't want them knowing we're onto them."

Naruto nodded and ran for his hut, desperately writing a quick letter to Hinata and grabbing his belongings. Naruto couldn't help but lose his appetite as he wondered what Dad wasn't telling him about Hinata. She'll be all right, and you'll knock her socks of when you see her on her sweet sixteen! Naruto kissed his letter, and steeled himself for what he expected to be an exciting year.


Cold autumn air nipped at Sakura as she nuzzled herself into her sleeping bag. Like everything else on this mission, it screamed of a last-minute hatchet job thrown together out of desperation. The mission had been assigned out of nowhere, and at least half of the mission was secret to her and most of the group.

She sighed, letting out steamy breath in the shelter of the tent. A quick glace to the shadows through the tent's fabric indicated Sasuke was still on watch by the campfire. She had been paired with him, Choji, and a weirdo kid named, Sai. None of them had any real history of working together as a team, and Sai had the bad habit of speaking his mind without a filter. As good as it is to have Sasuke, I'd kill to have Hinata with me on this… and Naruto.

While Hinata was present, she was part of a different cell in this camp. She was paired with Ino and Shikamaru on some kind of secret mission that would take them away starting tomorrow. Sakura's team, meanwhile, were on a sweep trying to root out a group of rouge mercenaries. The trail was already three days cold since the last sighting, and they were looking for a needle in a haystack – Sakura was fairly certain the wild goose chase was meant as a diversion to draw attention from whatever the other team was doing – the fact that they were lumbering about on the border of the Land of Sound was too much of a coincidence.

Sakura huffed, jealous of her former teammate. Ever since Team Seven broke up, Sakura could count on one hand how many field missions she'd been on. Most of her days were spent in the hospital or the classroom. Just thinking of it made the vice tighten around her head as she took a cold breath of autumn night air. She missed the field; she missed being outdoors, and she missed her team.

Hinata, on the other hand, undergone so many discrete physicals in the past year alone that Sakura could only imagine how many stamps were in the girl's mission logbook – her real logbook and not the fake one she carried around. Hinata was definitely into something heavy and probably dangerous. I'd kill for just a bit of action or danger!

The hum of the tent zipper stole Sakura away from her frustrations. Alarm made her heart race as a shadowy figure slid through the portal of campfire light before closing the door behind him. She almost screamed before recognizing Sasuke's sharp features. "Hi, there," he grinned.

"S-Sasuke!" she hissed, careful not to raise her voice, "What the hell are you doing! You're on watch!"

"Watch ended about five seconds ago," he checked his watch, and he crawled closer. "It was cold in my sleeping bag; I was curious if it was warmer in yours." Even in the dim light, his shark grin shined like pearls.

"You're such a pervert!' she hissed.

"But you love me, anyway!" He planted a sensuous kiss on her mouth, his tongue scanning around, causing the heat of her sleeping bag to increase several degrees.

"Sasuke!" she heaved out steam as they separated, "We're on a mission!"

"That never stopped us before," he reminded her.

Even Sakura had to smirk, "Who is on watch?"

"Hinata," he shrugged.

"Oh, hell no!" Sakura protested, "she has ears like a bat and eyes that can see through walls!"

Sasuke placed his pointer finger on her lips, "I sealed the tent with a Justu, she won't hear a thing," he again grinned confidently, "Besides, she's too bashful to watch something like this." He again kissed her; the grinding of her sleeping bag zipper signaled his intentions as he slid the bag open.

"Dammit, it's cold!" she whined as the heat evaporated off her body.

"I'll keep you warm," Sasuke again kissed her, his hands wandering underneath the blouse of her mission gear, massaging her stomach.

"Sasuke! What are you doing!" His hands wandered to the elastic band of her bra.

"We're on a dangerous mission, hunting dangerous criminals," he explained, not slowing down. "Do you really want to buy the farm as a virgin?"

The fact that he was asking her to have sex heated her, despite the cold nip in the air. You're both sixteen, and he's been your boyfriend since you were twelve. Sakura had quietly fantasized about it since the first time they'd locked lips – the time Kakashi had caught them. "All right, you fiend, I give!" she giggled as he tickled along her sides. Sakura covered her mouth to stifle a shriek of laugher.

Sasuke wasted no time, forcing her blouse over her head and kissing her from stomach to her breasts, along her neck, and up to her left ear, "Say you love me!" he heaved as he blew fire into her ear. His hands under her back fumbled with her bra clasp, and soon it was flung to the far side of the tent.

"I love you!" Sakura moaned, still struggling to keep her voice down despite the jutsu Sasuke promised would keep them silent to the others.

As he pulled back, Sakura yanked his shirt over his head, revealing his toned body. Sasuke skillfully snapped open the buttons of her khaki pants and released her zipper. Wordlessly, he grabbed a fistful of material and yanked both pants and panties down past her ankles, the cold night air and self-consciousness causing her to instinctively cover herself with her arms. While she felt safe with Sasuke, she'd never been exposed like this to anyone.

"Relax," he traced fingers through her pink hair, "I promise I won't hurt you," he promised with his black eyes like an incubus in the dark promising to leave her satisfied without paying the consequences. His hand slithered down her body, tracing down past her core until her reached her womanhood. "Sasuke!" she hollered in pleasure at his touch.

He toyed with her, sending her mind and body to places she'd never been. His lips and tongue scoured her body, seeking to provide pleasure over every last inch they could find until they made their way back to her lips. "Tell me you want me!" Sasuke said breathily to her mouth.

"I-I want you so badly right now!" Sakura began kneading along the tight bands of muscles in his back before sliding down along his tight abs. Before she realized what she was doing, Sakura had pulled away his belt, and his pants, and his boxers. Sasuke found his way between her legs. Despite being ready, she felt the discomfort of his pressure against her. There was resistance at first, like she was fighting him. He pressed harder, and she felt a momentary sting, like a rubber band snapping. "Ah!" she let out a muffled scream.

Despite the strength he had, Sasuke didn't force the issue further. He held still, letting her adapt to the sensation. "It always hurts a bit the first time; just relax and it will pass." Soon it did, and she pulled him in further as she wrapped her legs around him. He soon found her rhythm, and she was clay in his hands, each movement pushing her closer to the edge of a cliff she yearned to dive from.

Electricity pulsated her body, making her tingle over every last inch of skin. Sasuke soon writhed with his release, and alarm bells rang in the back of Sakura's head – he wasn't wearing a condom! "Sasuke!" she screamed, realizing it was too late. Her own body began charging to critical mass, and stars exploded behind her closed eyes as she came not long after, causing Sakura to scream at the top of her lungs.

For several moments, her head spun in dizziness. As she came back down from the heavens, Sasuke melted into the sleeping bag beside her, kissing her hand. "Not bad, eh?" he grinned, "I just hope that sound-blocking jutsu works properly!"

Momentary horror washed over Sakura as she turned her head toward the tent wall, watching for any telltale sign of movement in the camp. Satisfied that Hinata and the others weren't going to burst in on them bare-ass naked in the aftermath of lovemaking, Sakura slapped Sasuke across the ass, "You're an asshole!"

"Oh, do that again," he giggled.

"You would like that," she mock-sneered. "But," she regained her seriousness, "if you just got me pregnant…"

"You're on the pill, I thought," Sasuke finally showed some level of seriousness.

"I am, that isn't the point!"

"Well, what is?" he rolled on his back, "You worry too much, and life is too short to be spent worrying about the miniscule percentages of things going wrong."

Sakura curled into him, protection against the cold as much as protection from worry. "And you take too many risks. How would you explain it to your father if I can home carrying your baby?"

"I guess I'd finally be even with him for being such a hard-ass," he chuckled.

Sakura burned in annoyance, "Dammit Sasuke, it isn't just your life you'd be screwing up if that happened," she slapped a hand on his chest.

"It won't happen," he took the hand, massaging it. "Besides," he grinned, rolling on top of her, "I'd marry you if it came to that." He was trying to charm his way back in, and it worked.

The following morning, Sakura woke early, oddly refreshed despite being rather sore from the night's events. The morning light was grey through the tent, suggesting another crappy overcast day. Sakura delicately extracted herself from Sasuke's arms and scurried in the cramped space to find her bits of discarded clothing.

Fully dressed, she exited the tent to be greeted by the exaggerated smile of Sai's normally expressionless face. "Good morning, Sakura! Was your evening with Sasuke a pleasant one!" His voice projected like he was trying to imitate the emotion of being joyous. Choji snickered in the background as he warmed breakfast over the campfire, almost choking

Art skills of a prodigy, the emotional intelligence of a teaspoon. Sakura knew it wasn't the man's fault; Sai had been seized as an orphan as a toddler and trained to be an emotionless killer by the former head of the ANBU. What had resulted instead was a fully grown adult with the innocent naivety of a three-year old. "A lady does not discuss such things," Sakura corrected in a crisp, clipped voice, hoping that Sai understood further conversation was not invited.

"Ask Sasuke, he'll be more than happy to tell you all about it!" Choji quipped. YOU ASSHOLE! Choji grinned widely as he waved to her.

Before she could say anything, Sai smiled again, "Ah, I will have to discuss with him at length!" He retrieved a folded note from his pocket, "By the way, Sakura, Hinata asked me to give this to you," he handed her the folded note.

"Where is she, anyhow?" Sakura surveyed the camp to notice it devoid of Hinata, Shikamaru, or Ino.

"They left at dawn, just like we were supposed to do," Choji clipped, "it's almost 0900."

Oh crap! Sasuke, you deviant! He was still sawing logs in the tent. Sakura opened the note and read:

Dear Sakura,

I have no objection to you and Sasuke having fun, but please not while I'm on watch. I cannot filter things out with my Byakugan!

Hinata

P.S. I do not have the ears of a bat, but I am a trained lip-reader. Don't forget to take your pill this morning.

Sakura went pink at the note – Hinata had seen everything in glorious detail! While there didn't seem to be any worse judgement than expected, the postscript caused Sakura's blood to turn icy. Sasuke hadn't used a condom, and she hadn't had time to refill her birth control meds before leaving. She dashed into the tent, causing Sasuke to stir as she rifled through her bag. She was down to her last two days of medication, both placebo meds. Assuming they could get to a village with an apothecary discretely, there was hope that she might avoid having to explain to Master Tsunade why she'd need to take a year off from her apprenticeship.

If not, her life was about to change dramatically. Sakura stared as Sasuke as he began getting dressed. My love, you're going to be the death of me.


The mission and the skimpy maid's outfit were both ill-suited for Hinata Hyūga. However, the delicate situation called for her unique abilities, and hopefully, today would bring this hair-wrenching nightmare to an end – not just for her.

As she checked her makeup in the mirror, she reflected on what had brought her here. Three years earlier, Itachi Uchiha had offered her a field agent position in the Konoha Investigation Bureau, requiring her to become an ANBU in the process, albeit a reservist. For much of the past few years, she had been sent on a high-risk espionage missions, and she had infiltrated several criminal organizations within the Land of Fire disguised as a servant or an underlying. Being able to remain unseen, unnoticed, and unrecognized were the hallmarks of her work until now.

She tied on the white apron over the overly short black maid's uniform. The dress, complete with white stockings and garter belts, left little to the imagination, and she had endured three days of up-skirting and ass-grabbing by her employer, Lord Yamamoto – her intended target.

She sighed as she touched up her eyeliner. Cute and innocent, naughty and nasty later. Normally, Lord Fourth and Itachi wouldn't have given her such a mission – Lord Minato considered her his daughter and Itachi treated her like a sister. However, Lord Yamamoto's standing required a delicate touch. He was a wanted criminal, a trafficker of women and illicit substances, in Konoha, and he was residing inside the border of the Land of Sound, putting him beyond prosecution.

Despite the man's degeneracy, he was paranoid with his security. The assassin had to be female, young, and had to turn the man's eye without raising the eye of his security detail. Hinata initially balked at the mission until she read the mission profile. He had a large shipment of women taken or lured from their villages about to be smuggled over the border into the Land of Sound, along with a sizable shipment of Fatal Lust coming the other way. If the traffickers made it over the border, there was no feasible way of rescuing the human cargo. And another shipment of death paid by human lives.

Hinata tied back her hair into a tight bun. Frost blue contact lenses concealed her Byakugan, and cleverly placed silicone makeup added volume to her cheeks, also concealing the blood vessels that became prominent when she activated her Byakugan. Now or never, let's go! Hinata scanned the area, ensuring she wasn't observed.

Her heart crawled into her throat as she walked to the bathhouse. A half dozen young women in similar outfits maintained the grounds, the mildest wind threatening to expose underwear to prying eyes. Focus on it, not on my face. As she approached the building, an overly pale girl exited in seasonably brief costume – short black shorts, a black crop top, and fishnet stockings. She was obviously a prostitute. Lord Yamamoto had a taste for young, pale, and shy; and his appetite was reportedly insatiable. From what Hinata learned from the other maids, being assigned to bath duty was usually an invitation to join him in the bath – an invitation that could not be refused – prostitute or not.

As she entered the outer chamber, steam clung to her skin, doing nothing to dispel the chill in her hands or the cold sweat trickling down her back. She heaved several deep breaths, knowing only one of them would leave the bath alive. She pushed aside the sliding door and bowed, "Lord Yamamoto, I am at your service."

"Ah, maid Tanaka," the man gestured with wide open arms, completely not self-aware in his lack of covering. He was portly, with black hair and a thin goatee. Despite the fine smile, Hinata was not swayed. The man was a human trafficker and unrepentant sexual predator. "Won't you join me?" his pearly white teeth beckoned her forth.

Blood pooled in Hinata's cheeks, and she bowed slightly, averting her gaze, but not her Byakugan, "L-Lord Yamamoto!" she stammered, "I-it is not right for the help to see you as such!"

"Nonsense!" he let out in booming laughter, "It is an honor to have you in this house; you work so hard. Besides, it is a high honor to be invited into the lord's bath, even higher honor to be invited into his bed," he grinned wickedly, "You might even find you enjoy it." In your dreams, jackass!

Hinata tapped her index fingers nervously. Despite preparing a thousand times for this moment, she couldn't shake her jitters, "It-it would be impolite to d-decline such an honor," Hinata choked on the words, feeling herself blush.

"Good girl," he smiled. "You won't be needing that outfit in here, now will you?" he spread his arms to gesture to the bath.

"N-no," she had to fight nausea at the thought of undressing near him, much less if he were watching. "L-Lord, if you'll please… I… I get so nervous undressing in front of others!" She gestured to the area behind him, "W-would you mind if I disrobed," her knees shook, "without you watching?"

Lord Yamamoto grinned, gesturing to the space behind him, "Please, I don't want you to feel… uncomfortable!"

Hinata strolled toward him, careful to add a minor flourish to her stride as she kicked off her shoes. His eyes wandered to her hips, not noticing the subtle change in her eyes. "N-no… no peeking!" she balanced playful with nervous, and he shot his head back away from her excitedly – exposing the chakra point at the base of the skull.

Without hesitation, Hinata struck with a single finger, piercing the chakra point with a gentle-fist strike. Lord Yamamoto's body momentarily went rigid, and his soon-to-be corpse went flaccid. Without so much as a mark on him, he dipped below the water. In a few seconds, he wouldn't be able to hold his breath, and he'd drown. No medical examiner in the world would be able to say anything other than he drowned.

Hinata wasted no time when she saw his chakra network beginning to sputter. She didn't feel bad about killing the man, but she didn't exactly feel good about eliminating him either. It didn't matter; she had to get moving, fast! Hinata stripped the gaudy maid outfit, tossing it into the wood-burning stove that heated the bath. Clad in only underwear, she pried loose a floorboard she had prepared two nights before when scouting the compound. Her bag was still where she left it. She quickly pulled out her makeup kit and quickly peeled away the prosthetic cheek makeup. In a few seconds, she applied dark purple eyeshade, applied raspberry blush, and put on an extra glittery layer or dazzling red lipstick. She pulled out her new disguise, black cutoff jean shorts, fishnet stockings, and a red and white crop top that hung off the shoulder to accent the black bra she wore underneath. She checked her watch. From proper maid to prostitute in under ten minutes, not bad!

The last flourish were knee-high black boots with two-inch platforms. She shook her hair out of the bun. Focus on my ass and not on my face. She exited the building, cold autumn air coating her skin, accenting how exposed she felt. Hinata walked with flare, reaching into her bag for a piece of gum. Remember what Ino taught you, look the part, act the part!

"Excuse me, madam," one of the maids came up to her as she strode toward the gate, "is the Lord ready to be dressed?"

In her best bubbly voice, Hinata giggled, "Awww, you don't want to disturb his lordship," she chewed her gum rigorously, "I just sent him to heaven; he won't want to get up every after what we did!" May he burn in hell.

"Oh!" the girl turned red from the implication.

"But he did ask you to make sure his bed was turned down," Hinata winked, "I think he wants it ready for at least three tonight if you know what I mean!" Hinata nudged her with a suggestive elbow. "Tell him it was an honor!" Hinata winked as she resumed her stride, the guards didn't even pay another prostitute a second look as she exited the compound to the surrounding woods.

Once she was far from sight, Hinata kicked off the platforms and sprinted until she reached another hidden cache. This time, she ditched the prostitute costume, and changed into ANBU mission gear – a black jumpsuit and a white porcelain mask with black whiskers painted at the cheeks.

Shortly after, she was back over the border into the Land of Fire. She finally felt normal as she met up with Shikamaru and Ino. "I have the rendezvous point!" she heaved.

"The target?" Shikamaru asked through his mask.

"Eliminated," Ino answered, tilting her head to the side, "Your first kill? Do you need to talk?"

"My first, and I don't need to talk," Hinata shook her head, removing her mask, "the monster is dead, now let's spring his victims."

Despite the gravity of what she did and what they still had to face on this side of the border, Hinata felt soothing relief knowing they were back in their home territory. They'd raid the rendezvous point tonight, but first they needed to regroup with the other team. The trek to the nearest village took only a few hours, and they checked in at the inn. "May I have the name?" the lady innkeeper asked.

"Himawari Tanaka," Hinata used her mom's maiden name and her future daugther's name.

"Oh yes, Lady Tanaka, your husband Itachi left his message," the lady pulled a note from a pigeonhole.

Hinata opened the note:

Hinata, find naruto, this is important.

-Sasuke

She showed the message to Shikamaru and Ino, "Does this mean anything to you?"

Both scrutinized the letter and shook their heads.

"Your cabin is next to you travel companions, number six," the innkeeper said. "They are already here."

Already? Hinata felt sick in her stomach. Something was wrong. They walked hurriedly to the cabin. As the three of them arrived, Sai, Sakura, and Choji stood in front of the cabins. Sakura's eyes were red and her cheeks puffy. "Sakura, what happened? Where is Sasuke?" she scanned the group, noting his absence.

"We don't know," she sniffled, holding out a Hidden Leaf headband with the symbol dented and cracked, "he's disappeared!"